What does it take to be successful?

When I study the lives of famous artists, I often think: “Passion is slavery.” I wonder how Picasso, Gaudí, Benedetti, Borges, and Kahlo managed to go through their days juggling love or the lack of it, nutrition, dreams, and everyday bugs. Life is just full of accidents, and it all happens while we are working hard to feed our families.

Therapy

Sadly, medical insurance in the United States often doesn’t cover mental health adequately. That’s why most people go about patching their broken parts with psychedelic substances. But if everybody could afford therapy, the world would be a much better place. Humans need help processing the life events that cause trauma.

You might wonder: why in the world is Anechy talking about therapy in this post? Fair to say, I’m no expert, but I know from personal experience how beneficial therapy can be. Creativity is a need related to its mental health benefits. Coming from a culture where seeking therapy is taboo, I feel good that I looked for help when I did.

Discipline

For the last twenty-nine weeks, I have been writing these posts to help others with writing and publishing advice. Additionally, I have built a discipline of writing for an hour once a week. This exercise helps my concentration, motivates me to research, and allows me to practice the craft of writing. Even more, the consistency trains me to be disciplined. That’s why this week, I want to propose an exercise for you that will help with both discipline and mental health.

Look at It as a Game

For this game, you will need a pen and a notepad. Preferably, use something small enough that you can carry with you everywhere in your back pocket or purse. The reason I don’t suggest using your phone is that as soon as you pull it out, something will try to capture your attention.

You are going to play this game when you have a break at work or school. It works like this: you have five minutes to open a blank page and write whatever comes to your mind without judging it. This is something you won’t show to anybody, so feel free to brain-dump. If what comes to mind is little stick figures, flowers, words, phrases, or doodles, that’s exactly what you’ll write. But remember, you only have five minutes. Make sure you date and number each entry.

How did I come up with this game?

This year, I started taking classes on SkillShare. One of the first ones I took was about creating a drawing journal—a place to chronicle my daily life through very primitive illustrations. My first entry was on January 8, 2026, and to date, I already have 66 entries. Although I haven’t drawn in the small notebook every single day, this exercise has kept me motivated to stay consistent, making at least one drawing every day.

Rewarding a Job Well Done

Because we all need each other, and it takes a village to accomplish anything, I want to reward you for your good results.

• If you can hold this challenge for a week, send me a message on Facebook or Instagram, and I will email you a free page from my coloring book.
• If you can do it for two weeks: I will send you a handmade butterfly.
• If you can keep the challenge for 21 pages: I will send you a free chapter of my first book.
• Ultimately, if you make it 90 days: I will gift you a free 30-minute consultation on self-publishing.

All you have to do is send me your start and end dates. Your journal remains completely private unless you choose to share it.

On Writing

This week, I have a new book recommendation to help you with your writing process. This book was highly recommended on a scriptwriting podcast. Any author can benefit from the teachings of John Truby in “The Anatomy of Story: 22 Steps to Becoming a Master Storyteller.” Check out this link to learn more.

News

This past week, I have been recovering from migraines. As part of the healing process, I spend hours seeking silence and sound therapy. I also joined a Bio-emotion therapy group; we meet once a week to unlock trauma and support each other while learning. Needless to say, I dedicate a lot of time to doodling and doing drawing exercises. My goal is still to illustrate my own children’s books.

Talking about children’s books, I translated a book for the author Claudia Yanes Castellanos, which is available on Amazon now. Mateo’s Stories can be found here.

Au Revoir

Lastly, my illustrator in Cuba is suffering from tendinitis, and the blackouts there are putting a lot of stress on his life due to a lack of sleep. I’m running a campaign right now: if you purchase my coloring book for $10.99, all the proceeds will go toward helping my illustrator with cash, medicine, and food. Cuba is going through critical moments and a lot of uncertainty.

Thank you for reading—this was a really long post. I truly appreciate your time.

Anechy Padrón